People across the world celebrate the start of 2026, with New York’s iconic Times Square ball descending 18 hours after the South Pacific greeted the new year.
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Fireworks burst over the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the New Year celebrations in Sydney, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
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People cheer during the 2026 Taipei New Year's Party celebration in front of the Taipei City Government Building in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying)
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People pose for pictures near illuminated decorations on New Year's Eve in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
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People gather before the New Year's countdown event in front of the Bosingak pavilion where the annual New Year's bell-ringing ceremony is held in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
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People gather underneath a large screen at a shopping mall showing CCTV broadcasting Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission as he speaks at the New Year gathering held by the ºÃÉ«tv Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), in Beijing, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
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People attend the New Year countdown event to celebrate the start of 2026 in the Central district of Hong Kong, on Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
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People burn old resolutions on the New Year at the Zojoji Buddhist temple, minutes after midnight Thursday Jan. 1, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
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Fireworks explode over the Chao Phraya River during New Year celebrations in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
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Revelers ring in the new year at the Juyongguan Great Wall on the outskirts of Beijing, China, early Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
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Fireworks explode around the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building, during New Year's Eve celebrations in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)
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Fireworks light up the sky in central London to celebrate the New Year on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)
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Fireworks light up the sky over Elizabeth Tower and the London Eye in central London during the New Year celebrations, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (Jamie Lashmar/PA via AP)
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Fireworks light-up the sky in central London to celebrate the New Year on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)
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People arrive to Times Square during New Year's Eve celebrations, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez)
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A light show is projected on the Arc de Triomphe as fireworks explode during New Year celebrations on the Champs Elysees, in Paris, France, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
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Confetti falls over attendees in Times Square during New Year's Eve celebration, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez)
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Revelers celebrate the start of 2026 after the ball drop in Times Square during New Year's Eve festivities, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
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